Hi.
I'm after some advice regarding sleep training. We have a 9 month old who's never been a great sleeper at nighttime. She can't link sleep cycles and has a bit of a BF sleep association. She is combination fed, though, and the last bottle before bedtime is formula.
She falls asleep on her own (in the cot) for naps and bedtime, which is great.
But then she wakes up around 3-4 times a night, she will stand up and cry until I come and giver her a bottle or the booby.
I don't think it's hunger, I'm pretty sure it's just a bad habit we got into.
She sleeps in her cot and I sleep on a bed in the same room.
So she basically knows that I am there somewhere and when she starts to cry, I get up and pick her up after a while.
I've left her to cry on many occasions but it just escalates.
Has anyone been in a similar situation? Are there any gentle methods for this particular problem?
I don't want to use CIO because I worry that it might make her traumatised to go to sleep and make her dislike her cot.
I don't want to spoil the good thing we've got going (that she falls asleep on her own for naps and bedtime).
Any ideas? Thanks